'Proud Moment For India': Ex-ISRO Chief Hails NVS-03 Launch, Says Mission Restores Confidence After Setback

New Delhi: Former ISRO Chairman G Madhavan Nair on Saturday described the successful launch of the NVS-03 navigation satellite aboard the GSLV-F18 rocket as a proud moment for India, saying the mission marked the resumption of ISRO's launch schedule following the setback during its previous mission. 

Speaking to ANI, Nair said the successful launch and injection of the satellite into orbit demonstrated ISRO's ability to execute missions on time and with precision. 

"It's really a proud moment for all of us in India that NVS-03 has lifted off and been successfully placed into orbit by the GSLV. Considering the failure encountered during the last mission, this is a grand success. It is also a happy thing to note that ISRO's launch schedules have resumed. ISRO has once again proven that it can manage its missions perfectly on time and with quality," he said.   

Recalling the development of India's regional navigation system, Nair said he had conceived the concept in 2005 and described NavIC as a unique and economical system capable of providing accurate timing, positioning and navigation services using seven satellites. 

"I'm also really proud that what I conceived in 2005 as a regional navigation system is a very unique setup. With seven satellites alone, we are able to provide accurate timing, positioning and navigation data for the Indian subcontinent and surrounding areas, compared to the 32-satellite constellation used by GPS. This is also an economical way of doing it, and we have demonstrated to the world that we can manage space resources efficiently," he said. 

On the accuracy of India's navigation system, Nair said the reports he had received indicated that its performance was better than that of GPS. He added that the system had accurate signals required for various security needs. 

Highlighting the next set of challenges for India's navigation satellite programme, Nair identified the development of an indigenous atomic clock as an important achievement of the NVS-03 mission. 

"What I understand is that an indigenous version of the atomic clock has been developed and flown in this mission. That will give us confidence," he said. 

He further stressed the need to develop satellite-based communication services for handheld devices, suggesting that India could explore a geostationary satellite constellation to provide direct connectivity. 

Nair said such a system could use just two satellites and could build on technologies demonstrated through the GSAT-6 mission, launched in 2010. He noted that the satellite's deployable antenna, high-power amplifiers and highly sensitive receivers could be utilised to provide direct connectivity to handheld devices. 

He added that although satellite-based connectivity could involve some time lag, it would not be a major concern for internet services. 

Nair also said that, according to his assessment, 98.5 per cent of India's land area was covered by terrestrial 5G networks, while satellite connectivity could help serve the remaining areas.  

He said, "What we have to do is go for communication to handheld devices from space... we made a beginning in 2010 itself. The GSAT-6 was launched, but unfortunately, it was not put to proper use. If we can revive that, and not only that, technologies that were developed in it, like the deployable antenna in space, the high-power amplifiers and also the highly sensitive receivers which are required, can provide direct connectivity to the handheld devices. Of course, there will be a time lag, but that time lag doesn't matter as far as the internet services are concerned. Today, in India, 98.5% of the land is covered by the 5G network land-based system. So, the remaining 1.5% of the area only needs to be covered by the satellite, and that can be efficiently implemented by building around the GSAT-6 technology and deploying it in space."